A&M Welcomes New Associate Director of Student Media
Beginning in July, Spencer O’Daniel will join the Division of Student Affairs as the associate director of Student Media. With more than a decade of experience advising student media at both the high school and collegiate levels, O’Daniel is an award-winning publication advisor, mentor and media educator who will help guide the vision of a new office of Student Media to expand both extracurricular and journalism opportunities for A&M students.
Most recently, O’Daniel has advised Seamless Productions, a mini-video creative agency in Maize, Kansas, along with advising The OneMaize Show and Fusion Online through the OneMaize Media program. His students have won Pacemakers in website, video and yearbook, a Kansas Scholastic Press Association state championship, All-Kansas awards, along with the Student Television Network Broadcast Excellence Award.
O’Daniel served as a board member for the Kansas Scholastic Press Association, mentors and helps dozens of advisers across Kansas, and is a Master Journalism Educator through the Journalism Education Association. He has been recognized as the 2017 Sunflower Award winner through Kansas Scholastic Press Association and was awarded as the 2022 Distinguished Broadcast Adviser through JEA. In May, O’Daniel won the 2023 Kansas Collegiate Media Jackie Engel Award for excellence in scholastic publications advising. He was also selected as a USD 266 Celebrating Excellence winner through the Maize Career Academy. O’Daniel regularly contributes to JEADigitalMedia.org, judges journalism and media contests for over a dozen states, teaches at several media summer workshops and presents at local, regional and national scholastic journalism events.
O’Daniel’s hire will be the beginning of expanded opportunities for A&M students who are interested in visual and print media, said Stefanie Baker, director of Student Life.
“Student Life within the Division of Student Affairs is thrilled for the opportunity to be part of the newly expanded journalism program and to help provide students opportunities to engage in transformational experiences directly connected to their academic pursuits,” Baker said. “It is a wonderful opportunity to have a Student Life program sit academically adjacent and to work closely with well-established faculty and instructors of practice in the field.”
The Office for Student Media within the Division of Student Affairs is part of the vision for strategic campus partnerships, including the expanded journalism program within the Department of Communication & Journalism, as part of The Path Forward. Goals include the growth of resources and student participation across A&M media entities, including The Battalion student-run newspaper, The Aggieland yearbook, KAMU public television and radio, and KANM student-run radio. Along with expanded curricular and internship opportunities for students, the coordination by the Office for Student Media will help facilitate advertising sales and growth across existing campus media entities.
“It’s the beginning of an amazing time for our students who are interested in journalism and communication at Texas A&M University,” Baker said.